Wessington Springs herald. (Wessington Springs, Aurora County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1891, 1887-01-14
rxoar1xo orr nrDnoruon,.

Gen. Beale apparently believes ii.
hydrophobia is but creation to CO,
tain extent, of the imagination. WIZ,
he was young man he was Survey,
General in Southern California Dm
ing his residence there, through ii.
purchase of land, he laid the found.
ton for his present fortune. His H.
vorite sport at that time was the hum.
ing of wolves. The hunters would o,
out armed with lances and folio,
trained dogs. The dogs would run
down the wolves. Immediately fol. /
lowing the attack one wolf would
always leave the dogs and come to at |
tack the hunter. The General said
one day when . wolf came toward him
the lance, with which he could eas,
keep off and destroy any wolf making
any ordinary attack, broke. AS hi,
lance broke he commenced to kick thu
wolf under the jaw. His foot missed
its aim and instead was caught in the
VOLTS mouth. The wolf bit clea,
through his moccasin and wounded him
severely. Sogrim was the grip of the
wolf that he did not even release his
hold when killed. The muscles SUP.
porting his jaws had to be cut before
his teeth could be relaxed from this ter.
rible grip. When the General returned
to camp, as he was alone during this eS.
perience, he was met 81 a chetffu7 com.
panion, who told him that the bite 0;
an enraged wolf was certain to produce
hydrophobia. The wolf was undoubt
eddy in condition to communicate the
rabies, as he had been worried to
great extent by the dogs before he at.
tackled the General. Gen. Beale says
that he did~not have any opportunity of
cauterizing the wounds, and had at
tached no particular Importance to the
bite until he had returned to camp.
He said after that there was hardly
day passed but what his companion re-
ferred to cases of hydropholia missing
from wolf-bites. The result of this
continued talk upon the subject was to
produce a great depression in Gen.
Beales mind. Within short time be
began to feel symptoms of an approach.
ing attack of hydropholia He lal
the most extraordinary aversion to
water. It was with difficulty that he
could swallow. A swelling came in bis
throat which threatened to close it
whenever he sought to drink. It was
only by an extraordinary effort of the
will that he could force himself to swal-
low. One day the General said to him
self that unless he combated this grow
ing feeling he felt certain that he would
have an attack of hydrophobia. So
one morning he walked deliberately to
spring and thrust his head into the
water. He said as he approached his
head to the water he felt the most In
tense desire to jump, and scream, and
run away from it. But he held himself
right there, and moved his head up and
down in the water until he conquered
this impulse and the aversion. He fol-
lowed up this practice until he felt the
swelling in the throat going down and
his aversion to water lessening. He
felt that he was getting control, and
this encouraged him. In short time
all symptoms of the disease had disap-
peared. The General was firmly con-
WINGED that if he had for one moment
relaxed his will-power during that try
ing time he would have passed directly
into fit of the widest kind of hydro
phobia. He has never suffered from
the bite of the wolf since that time, al
though it occurred over TWENTY-FIVE
years ago.
HE RECOGNIZED TIE FRIEND.